Category: Review

The last movie I actually caught on the big screen was The Visit, and even then only because I didn’t have to fork out a single cent – Thanks Kev!

Anyways, the hype for this flick was off the chart for me, personally. I enjoyed Cloverfield when it came out (having Odette Yustman in it doesn’t hurt either) so when the trailer premiered, I was like, HOLY BALLS!

Without giving away too much, John Goodman stole the show.
We’re so used to seeing him portray affable characters, people that you’d want as your best buddy or dad, so watching him switch between face and heel was quite astonishing.

The one single knock I have with the movie is the ending.
Why oh why did it have to be this way? :(

Now then, about two weeks back I received a parcel that I eagerly awaited since CNY. On a whim one day, I participated in a silly sony soundaholic contest and to my surprise, I actually won. The prize? A shocking purple, 2 gig NW-S700.

Prior to this, I owned an earlier incarnation of the walkman series and I loved how the little puppy kept up despite the drops and brute abuse it took. The NW-S700 then, is like a beagle to the mongrel. The noise canceling takes some time to get used to if you’re not accustomed to sticking things into your ears but it does a more than a respectable job at it. The in-ear ear buds incorporate little mics on the side which then detect ambiance noise and allows the built-in noise canceling to work its magic. It’s akin to having your ears under pressure. Not very pleasant the first time around but you get used to it.

The only downside to the noise canceling being built into the player itself becomes obvious once you get a peek at the earphone jack. It’s proprietary. Instead of the usual jack, there is a slight depression that will allow only enable noise canceling(NC) with the included ear buds. Regular users who can’t stand them are out of luck unless you purchase a separate pair of NC cans.

The OLED is gorgeous. The colors are bright, sharp, and feature uncheesy-like animation. Very sophisticated I might say. Sure some might argue about how tiny it is, and how for the same price(RM700) you might be tempted to pick up a 2 gb nano instead. Sure, it’s hipper(I’m in NO way bashing iPod users now), makes use of itunes(which I LOVE for the extremely customizable smart playlists), and isn’t Sony(huge ass plus considering Sonys’ not-so-spotty history). And oh, OS X users might want to stay away from the walkman series: they’re tingkap only.

The again, the sound quality is miles ahead of the iPods. Trust me on this. The bundled ear buds take care of the extra moolah(a minimum of RM120) that you need to spend on a decent pair of NC ‘phones. Honestly though, ipods are so ubiquitous these days. Every where you turn, you’re greeted with the sight of white wires sneaking down peoples ears. The build quality on this is commendable: it’s quite solid and the finish is impeccable. Be sure to fork out some dough for the case though, I succeeded in getting a minor scratch on the first day itself.

Would I pick it over the nano? Yep. Would I BUY it over the nano? Perhaps not. I fancy iTunes way too much and maybe a little too shallow :D

Thank you for smoking is one of those shows that didn’t quite make it to our shores, because of, oh I don’t know. Aaron Eckhart whom some of you may recognize from his role as the baddie in that futuresque flick with Tom Cruise, gets his chance to shine this time around. And shine he does. He plays Nick Naylor, a tobacco spokesperson whose job is to hoodwink the public into thinking that smoking is nothing but a healthy activity.

In a nutshell, his mouth is as gifted as they come. It’s entertaining to watch how he manouvers himself around sensitive issues whilst giving the perception of having answered the question without actually doing it. This is something which he himself highlights and acknowledges in the movie itself.

Being able to look the other way and living with himself in light of his chosen career, Nick has another dilemma: his 12 year old son. Joey(potrayed excellently by Cameron Bright) is your average kid. He looks up to his dad but yet finds it difficult to come to terms morally with what he is doing for a living. This in my opinion, is the beauty of the movie itself. Throughout the hour and a half you spend watching this movie, the transformation of Nick and Joey & the expansion of their relationship is something that features prominently and they pull it off very well.

If this title sounds familiar for some odd reason, then you might have read about how Katie Holmes originally flashed her rack but this scene was removed(guess who jumped on the director’s couch). Not that this effects the show in any way but I guess we’ll have to wait a bit for that to happen. Adam Brody, Rob Lowe, William H. Macy & Robert Duvall also feature and as anal as I tend to be I couldn’t really find fault with anything.

I give this one a 8.5/10. A very worthy watch.
PS: Not one cigarrete was smoked in the making of this movie. Amazing eh? That’s one for the people who have BIAS written on their foreheads.

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About Me

Hi, I'm Andrew and this is where I let loose my views, thoughts, and what I do in my daily life.
This space has gone through a plethora of change over the years (as my blogroll history will testify), but the essence of it has mostly stayed true to what I intended it to be.